Toothbrush



March 8, 1927.

s. E. DOUGLASS TOOTHYBRUSH Filed Feb. 24, 1926 0A INVENT 0R, v ;g

ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 8, 1927.

UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

roo'rnBRUsH.

Application filed February 24, 1926. Serial No. 30,340.

This invention relates to'brushes, and particularly to improvements in tooth brushes.

It is an object of this invention to produce a tooth brush capable of being sterilized without injury to the brush structure or the anchorage of the bristles; and it is furthermore an object of the invention to produce a brush, sections of which are rotatable in order that the positions of the tufts of bristles will change with relation to the line of force applied to the brush during the brushing operation, a condition which will insure the removal of deposits at the gum margins of the teeth and from the spaces between the teeth.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this application wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in which- Figure 1 illustrates a view in side elevation of a tooth brush embodying the invention;

Figure 2 illustrates an enlarged sectional view of the brush on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Figure 3 illustrates a sectional view of one of the brush sections on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Figure 4 illustrates a plan view of a modified brush element.

In these drawings, 10 denotes a handle which may be of any desired configuration, but, in the present embodiment of the invention, the handle is shown as curved slightly and it has a threaded socket 11 in its end to receive the threaded shank 12 of a mirror 13 that is angularly disposed with respect to the handle, and it is the purpose of the inventor that this mirror shall magnify to the extent of the usual dental mouth mirrors in order that the user may observe the condition of the teeth or mouth.

The head 15 of the brush is intended as an anchorage for the rotatable brush sections 16, 17 and 18, and as the brush sections are of the same construction, a description of one of them will suffice as a disclosure for the brush sections so that one skilled in the art may understand the said construction and its use. Preferably the head is provided with a recess 19 centrally of its length, al-

shanks of the anchoring devices for the brush sections, which anchoring devices are here shown as screws 21. By this means, the rotary brush sections are anchored to the head, it being shown that those portions of the shanks of the screws on which the brush sections rotate are unthreaded to permit free rotation of the brush sections.

Each brush section, in the present embodiment of the invention, comprises a base plate 22 having a central aperture 23 for the reception of the anchoring element and a superimposed plate 24 also provided with a central aperture 25 through which the anchoring element projects. The super-imiposed plate is provided with a plurality of apertures 26, the number of which will equal the tufts of bristles comprising the brush section. The tufts of bristles have their inner endsinserted and secured by a substantially tubular clamp 27 one of said clamps being provided for a group of bristles or tufts. Each clamp extends through an aperture of the superimposed plate and the lower end of the clamp is upset or distorted to produce flange-like marginal projections 28 which lie between the plates so that the tufts cannot be readily dislodged from the said plates.

The plates may be secured together in any appropriate way but I have found that the formation of ears 29 on one of the plates which are shaped to embrace the edge of the other plate will serve to retain the parts of the rotary brush sections assembled.

When brush sections whose bristles are of the same length are secured on the head and one of the brush sections is located in the recess 19, it will follow that the ends of the bristles of this last mentioned section will be slightly below or inside of a line between the working faces of the other brush sections and this serves to impart to the brushing surfaces of the bristles a contour which conforms to the contour of the teeth and practically all of the bristles are therefore acting simultaneously on some portions of the surfaces of the teeth and in the interdental spaces thereof.

In Figure 4, I have illustrated a modified form of plate to be used in making the brush sections. In this embodiment of the invention, the plate 30 is angular in plan and it has an aperture 31 at each of its angles or corners, these apertures being intended to receive the tufts of the brush, and in'some instances, this configuration may be preferable, as the circumferential contour of the brush is broken or irregular and the bristles of the brush may more readily contact With the surfaces to be treated. or they may more readily find entrance to the interdental spaces. Vith this suggestion, those Whoare familiar With the art may see that instead of the plate being square, it might have other angular configurations, and the number of tufts may be increased or diminished, as practice may dictate.

I claim:

A tooth brush having a head with a recess on the bristle side thereof, the said head having a plurality of threaded seats, anchoring members threaded therein, brush sections rotatable on the anchoring members, each of said brush sections comprising superimposed plates-connected together, the outer of said plates being apertured, and bristle holding, sockets in the said apertures.

SAMUEL E. DOUGLASS. 

